CREATIVE COUPLE: THE DIETZES

For our next installment of WNW couples, we're pleased to introduce you to Member #1511 Mandy and Aaron Dietz, one of our favorite husband and wife creative teams. Working together was an obvious choice but it wasn't an immediate decision, "When we first moved to SF and were looking for jobs, we had the silly idea we’d go work separately, so we could have a normal married relationship. We’d go on separate interviews, but about ten minutes in, it would come up that we were married creatives and everyone just wanted us together."

MANDY

Describe your partner.

What do you admire about him?

I admire his enthusiasm. When mine has long left the building, Aaron will still care. And push.

Through working together..

..I have discovered that Aaron is pretty much never satisfied.

AARON

Describe your partner.

Mandy is lethally clever. Stylish. Loves animals. Thinks coffee is gross. And is a great drummer.

What do you admire about her?

I admire Mandy’s ability to find the little truths that can really crack a brief. Also she has a healthy skepticism for advertising, which I think makes our work truthful.

Through working together..

..I have discovered that Mandy’s bullshit meter is amazingly accurate.

MANDY + AARON

What came first, romance or work?

We met while working together at a small agency in Connecticut. We were often paired up as a team, and that friendship and work partnership became a full-time arrangement. We moved in together, and got married. Then picked up and moved out to San Francisco! Our background is more design-based, which led us to a lot of digital work. We’re happiest doing idea-driven projects in various media. We recently worked on a short animated video for Facebook’s birthday – Friend’s Day -- about two adorable monster besties. That was a fun one!

Do you have work/personal boundaries? If so, how do you draw that line?

Aaron could probably talk about work all day and all night. But I definitely draw the line. We have a rule that either of us can change the subject at any time.

When we first moved to SF and were looking for jobs, we had the silly idea we’d go work separately, so we could have a normal married relationship. We’d go on separate interviews, but about ten minutes in, it would come up that we were married creatives and everyone just wanted us together.

Favorite thing about working together. Hardest thing.

Favorite thing about working together is probably that we get to experience a lot of big moments together. Coming up with cool ideas together. Having a great meeting together. Traveling together. Most people don’t get to share any of their career highs with the person they like the best.

The hardest thing about working together is that you do lose a bit of that “I’m so happy to see you” that you’re supposed to have with your spouse. Luckily we have pets for that.

Are you friends with other creative couples? Why do you think people date each other in this field?

We’re friends with The Sharkeys, and Michelle Hirschberg and Nate Able, two great married creative teams. People date each other in this field because creative people tend to have similar senses of humor and taste, which are important ingredients for a successful relationship.

Do you have advice for other creative couples?

Advice... we’ve learned to entertain each other’s dumb ideas even when you want to shut them down. Oh, and try to fight over IM instead of out loud when you’re at work.